In the age of iPad kids, how can their screens be used to help them learn?

The use of technology has become second nature for kids even at an early age. With ready access to age-appropriate educational games on iPads and other mobile devices, preschoolers as young as two or three years of age can develop essential cognitive, developmental, and learning skills through screen time. For example, some game apps for children such as LEGO® and DUPLO® have different story lines, each one depicting an adventure set to background music without words, which encourage young children to use early developing cognitive skills in predicting what the characters in the game will do. Along the way, the games require children to complete several mini games where they exercise decision-making skills and use analytical thought processes. Some studies show that the educational and developmental benefits children receive when using these and similar mobile apps increase significantly when an adult, such as a parent, caregiver, or teacher, engages with the child in conversation about the plotline, the motive of the characters, or a similar aspect of the game.

Mobile game play supplemented with adult engagement can promote early cognitive skills

One study assessed early developmental cognitive skills, described by psychologists as “Theory of Mind” (ToM), in a group of preschoolers playing with LEGO® and DUPLO® mobile apps on an iPad. The study began by first allowing the children to play with an original, unchanged version of the apps. Researchers then modified the apps so that the games were enhanced with voice-overs containing words and language designed to promote a child’s early Theory of Mind cognitive skills. After gameplay, researchers then engaged the children in a semi-structured conversation about the game. They found that the apps with the voice-over enhancements proved the most effective in promoting early developing cognitive abilities in preschoolers, especially when supplemented with adult-led conversation.

How design of games can be improved

Several ideas have been proposed by researchers on how mobile game apps could be designed to better facilitate the development of early cognitive skills in young children and encourage parent-child co-engagement. Some of these include:

• Embedding conversational prompts within the game;
• Providing conversation-starter guides with the game;
• Allowing players to record their own narration of the story or role-play the characters; and,
• Requiring team-based parent-child strategy-building.

AI will play a role in shaping children’s cognitive abilities

As the development and accessibility of AI and interactive digital platforms continue to increase, so will the opportunities to use them as a tool in shaping children’s social-linguistic environments and Theory of Mind cognitive skills. Researchers suggest that AI has the potential to become a “conversation partner” or what is described as a digital “knowledgeable other.” Educational experts believe that this could benefit young children across different socio-economic backgrounds by providing them access to digital learning through a “digital adult” where interactive conversation would mirror real-life conversation that promotes early cognitive skills development.

To read more about how digital apps can help preschoolers develop early cognitive skills, read this article by Anya S. Evmenova, professor in the Special Education program at George Mason University’s School of Education. For more information on degree offerings in Mason’s Special Education program, please visit the program website.